TSMC reported to agree $2 billion five-year interposer deal with GlobalFoundries

GlobalFoundries plans to build production facilities at its Malta, New York, plant and begin mass production in the first half of 2028, Chosun Biz reported on 12 October, citing the industry and saying Yahoo Finance reported the agreement on 9 October. The report said the contract is worth $2 billion over five years, or about $400 million a year, and about 2.7 trillion won in total. It did not include confirmation from TSMC or GlobalFoundries.

A silicon interposer connects multiple chips such as a graphics processing unit and high-bandwidth memory. It is used in CoWoS, TSMC's advanced packaging technology, and has mainly been produced in Taiwan.

Why interposers matter

CoWoS is used to produce Nvidia's AI accelerators, and its supply capacity has lagged surging AI chip demand, becoming a production bottleneck, Chosun Biz reported. Expanding the interposer supply chain to the US would give TSMC a foundation to perform the main steps of AI chip production in the country, from wafer manufacturing to advanced packaging, according to the report.

From patent rivals to suppliers

According to the report, the deal draws attention because TSMC and GlobalFoundries filed patent infringement lawsuits against each other in 2019 before ending the dispute with a cross-licensing agreement. The report said GlobalFoundries exited the race to develop leading-edge process nodes in 2018 and has focused on mature nodes. Analysts say silicon interposers do not require the most advanced nodes, allowing the company to use its existing production capacity, according to the report.

US packaging push

TSMC is already producing wafers in Arizona and is pursuing construction of a local advanced packaging plant. At a conference in Santa Clara, California, on 22 April 2026, executives said construction had begun, Reuters reported. Kevin Zhang, deputy co-chief operations officer and senior vice president, said a day earlier that TSMC would build CoWoS and 3D-IC capability there before 2029.

Apple and Nvidia already source chips from TSMC's Arizona factory, but many of those chips must go back to Taiwan for packaging, the news agency reported. Amkor Technology last year said it was working with Apple and Nvidia to build a packaging factory in Arizona by mid-2027 and start production by early 2028, earlier than TSMC's timeline. Zhang said TSMC's technology discussions with Amkor remain ongoing.

Korean HBM stakes

The transfer of AI chip packaging supply chains to the US could affect Korean memory companies, Chosun Biz reported. HBM is mounted on the interposer alongside the GPU, so an expansion of packaging production in the US could heighten the need to respond to local supply chains. SK hynix is building an advanced packaging plant for HBM in Indiana and plans to begin mass production in the second half of 2028.